[SOLVED] PC keeps having massive drops in network speed ?

Jan 27, 2022
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My PC is connected to the router with ethernet cable but when I run a speedtest it starts around 300mbps and drops to 30 / 60 mbps.
When i download files it begins with 10mb/s but slowly drops to 200kb/s, and then it drops to 0kb/s and after some time it goes back up to 200kb/s and then repeats.

But when i connect the ethernet cable to my laptop the speed is a constant 500 mbps ?
 
Solution
So get a USB linux image that run completely from the USB stick. Most have a browser pre installed so you can run speedtst directly.

If this also has issues then it is more likely a hardware issue. If it works then you have to guess what program or what windows setting might cause this. Many times reinstall windows is going to be the fastest rather than digging around for days trying different settings.
It could be something with the computer or the settings but I suspect you have a bad ethernet cable. It would be nice if these cables just failed completely but you see situations where they work on some machines but not others.

This is has been made far worse with all the fake ethernet cables being sold. Many devices do not tolerate these cable that do not meet the standards to be real ethernet cables. The most common are those flat cables that have wires much too small to meet the requirements to be a certified ethernet cable.

I would buy a new cable and see if it fixes the issue. You want cat5e, you can use cat6 if it cheaper but it will not run any faster. Key though is the wire must be pure copper (no CCA). The wire size must be 22-24 awg so no flat or thin cables.

What you can also try is to use a old program like IPERF to test between the 2 machines in your house. This should show rates of 900+mbps between the machines. This is a extremely simplistic program that tests the cables and drivers etc. It does not use much memory/cpu and is not affected by most software installed on your machine.
 
It could be something with the computer or the settings but I suspect you have a bad ethernet cable. It would be nice if these cables just failed completely but you see situations where they work on some machines but not others.

This is has been made far worse with all the fake ethernet cables being sold. Many devices do not tolerate these cable that do not meet the standards to be real ethernet cables. The most common are those flat cables that have wires much too small to meet the requirements to be a certified ethernet cable.

I would buy a new cable and see if it fixes the issue. You want cat5e, you can use cat6 if it cheaper but it will not run any faster. Key though is the wire must be pure copper (no CCA). The wire size must be 22-24 awg so no flat or thin cables.

What you can also try is to use a old program like IPERF to test between the 2 machines in your house. This should show rates of 900+mbps between the machines. This is a extremely simplistic program that tests the cables and drivers etc. It does not use much memory/cpu and is not affected by most software installed on your machine.
i tried another cable that worked before but it does the same
 
So get a USB linux image that run completely from the USB stick. Most have a browser pre installed so you can run speedtst directly.

If this also has issues then it is more likely a hardware issue. If it works then you have to guess what program or what windows setting might cause this. Many times reinstall windows is going to be the fastest rather than digging around for days trying different settings.
 
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Solution